FAIMER Institute 2011 Fellow Josaphat Byamugisha, Chair of the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at Makerere University in Kampala, Uganda, led a presentation on remote teaching of basic suturing skills that was presented at the annual meeting of the Council on Resident Education in Obstetrics and Gynecology (CREOG) and the Association of Professors of Gynecology and Obstetrics (APGO) in Phoenix, Arizona, on February 28, 2013. The presentation, titled “Communication Technology for Surgical Skills Teaching in Uganda: A Pilot Study among Intern Doctors at Mulago National Referral and Teaching Hospital,” was based on research done by faculty from Makerere University and the University of California, San Francisco, led by Meg Autry.

Dr. Byamugisha led the team from Makerere University, which included two younger faculty members and was formed as a means of capacity building for scholarship in education. He reports that the presentation “showed that it is feasible, acceptable, and effective to use internet communication to teach and evaluate surgical skills.” The technology lends itself to other skills and teaching possibilities. It has the potential to reduce teaching burden on already strained local faculty as well as allow for a more broad international involvement in global scholarship for those who have travel or financial restrictions. Interaction with audience members after the conclusion of the presentation allowed for the sharing of ideas on collaboration and faculty development.